TIRANA, July 22 – Albania marks the 105th anniversary of the first technical school in the country. American teachers founded the institution on July 22, 1921. The school offered professional training in different fields.
Harry Fultz, a mechanics teacher, served as director of the American Technical School. He introduced a teaching approach based on learning through practice. The idea for the school emerged after a 1919 visit to Albania by American Red Cross representatives. They identified the need for educational institutions beyond medical assistance.
Later, on July 18, 1932, Fultz left Tirana after King Zog decided to nationalize education. The measure aimed to prevent Italian efforts to expand their influence in Albania. Fultz departed from the Port of Durres for the United States. He had led the technical school since 1922.
After World War II, Fultz returned to Tirana as deputy head of the American diplomatic mission. However, the communist government expelled him in 1946 and declared him an undesirable person.
In 1948, the Ministry of Education and Culture changed the institution’s name. Authorities replaced “Technical Institute of Tirana” with “Polytechnic of Tirana”. The school continued its mission as an important vocational education institution in Albania.
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